The Rules Are About To Change
by Can'tBeBroken
Summary: It’s all about the sex right? What happens when everything changes and their relationship faces harder decisions they thought they would have to make? MerAlex. Bad summery
1. Night Time Walk

Summery: It's all about the sex right

_**Summery: It's all about the sex right? What happens when it has to become something more? MerAlex. (Bad summery)**_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Grey's Anatomy.**_

_**I've never written a MerAlex before. I've never even thought about writing one but after reading a few I really like their chemistry. So I wanted to post this one to see if I got good response to my way of writing them. If this goes well, I have other ideas for potential MerAlex stories. **_

_**--**_

Night had fallen quicker than she had expected. Looking up at the sky, she wondered how long she had been walking. Here and there was a patch of stars poking out from behind thin clouds or wedged between thick ones. The park was lit with street lamps about ten feet apart, but the trees just behind her and beyond the fountain were completely dark. Falling back in a bench, she looked around. It probably wasn't safe for her to be out at night in a near empty park, but she couldn't stay in that house. The space was suffocating her. She couldn't ask anyone to come with her, especially not him. He would ask too many questions and it was just easier to avoid them all.

The wind blew through the trees sending a shiver down her spine. Pulling her coat tighter around her body, she looked around the park. A few people here and there walked or sat busy in their conversations. Her eyes traveled up to the sky. The night sky had always been a mystery to her. She could lay in the grass and be lost in it for hours on end. But tonight, she had too much on her mind to do that.

Her phone began to ring again, but she ignored it. Eventually it stopped only to start a few seconds later. She reached into her pocket and withdrew in. Looking at the ID, which said 'Alex,' she hit the ignore button and let it go to voicemail. She looked back up at the sky as if looking for an answer to the question that had been eating away at her all day. But nothing came. Nothing answered.

--

She sat in the driveway unsure if she should go in. Every time, she made an effort to move her body would lock up and she would sit there paralyzed. The lights were on in the living room. He was probably watching TV while eating whatever he could find for dinner. The clock ticked away another hour and it was midnight. Even though she had work in the morning and needed to be getting to bed, she couldn't move. But in the pit of her stomach, she knew it would be a sleepless night.

Taking a deep breath, she tried to mentally prepare herself enough to get out of the car. Pushing the door open, the lights in the car clicked on. She looked around, grabbed her bag, and got out of the car. Step one was done. Step two was the harder part. Slowly, she moved across the yard and up the pathway. She stared up at the front door as she stood at the bottom of the stairs. Taking the railing in her hand, she slowly began up what seemed like a never-ending set of stairs.

Taking another deep breath, she pushed the door open as quietly as possible. Stepping in, she looked around to find Alex asleep on the couch. Relief washed over her as she put down her stuff down. After pulling her shoes off, she walked across the living room to the couch and pulled the blanket, that hung over the back of the couch, over his sleeping figure before quickly heading upstairs.

--

The next morning, Alex woke up. Looking around, he noticed it wasn't his bed or his room. It wasn't Meredith's bed or Meredith room. It took a second for him to figure out he had fallen asleep on the couch. Sitting up, he looked around. The clock on the cable box read that it was five fifteen, so he still had a half an hour before he had to leave.

"Meredith?" He called into the kitchen.

Getting no answer, he headed upstairs and called her name again. He walked to her room and opened the door. The room was empty.

"Mer?" He called again.

Sighing, he walked out and into the bathroom. She must have already left.


	2. The Line

"Hey." Alex smirked as she pulled her scrub top on.

"Hey." She said quietly and looked away as he sat down on the bench.

"Where were you last night?"

"Just… out." She answered lamely.

"Out?" He repeated slightly unsure.

"Yes, out, Alex. People go out sometimes. You don't need to know everywhere I go, do you?" She snapped before storming out.

"Way to go, Evil Spawn." Christina laughed.

"What did you do?" Izzie asked as she cross her arms expectantly.

"I don't know." Alex answered honestly as he opened his locker.

--

Meredith sat at the lunch table not really into the conversation that her friends were having. She just picked through her salad granting or saying 'uh-huh' as if she were listening. But her mind was in another place.

"_Hey." He called from the kitchen when he heard the door shut expecting her to come straight in. But instead, she stormed up the stairs to her room slamming the door behind her. Falling back on her bed, she let everything that happened that day replay in her head._

"_Mer?" He called her name getting nothing in response. He pushed the door open to her room and looked around._

_The shades were closed and the light was off. He could heard soft crying sounds coming in the direction of the bed. _

"_Meredith?" He called quietly. _

"_I don't want to talk about it." She sniffled trying to stop crying. _

"_Mer?" He walked over to the bed. "What's wrong?"_

_He heard sniffling and a few short sobs. Climbing into the bed, he wrapped his arms around her. She laid her head on his chest. _

"_Derek…" She said gasping slightly. "Is gone… He left." _

_He sat silently in shock at first before tightening his grip around her. "Sh…" He tried to soothe her. _

"Mer? Earth to Meredith." Izzie said waving her hands in front of Meredith's face. "What's wrong with you today?"

"Nothing." She said rubbing her face. When she looked up, she noticed Alex walking onto the patio. He met her gaze and smirked. "I have to go. I'll see you guys later."

"Meredith…" Alex said as he approached the table.

Meredith didn't say anything as she walked away.

"What did I miss?" George asked.

--

Alex sat on the couch watching TV, but too lost in his thoughts to notice what was playing on the screen. The door opened and Meredith walked in shutting the door behind her.

"Hey." He said looking over at her.

"Hey." She answered taking off her coat.

"Do you want to order some pizza or something?" He asked.

"I'm just going to bed." She sighed. "I'm just… really tired."

"Can I come?" He asked with a cocky smile. But she just ran up the stairs. He got up and chased after. "Meredith, I was just kidding. Meredith."

She slammed the door and locked it.

He sighed. "Meredith." He jiggled to knob.

She walked into her room and fell back into the bed. Tears rolled off her cheeks.

"Meredith please." His voice came. "Meredith. Talk to me. Please talk to me." He put his head down on the door. "I'm sorry for whatever I did." He pleaded. "Just talk to me."

She rolled over burying her head into her pillow.

"We need to talk, Mer. Please, talk to me." He said jiggling the doorknob again.

--

"I don't know what's wrong with her," Alex said. He leaned on the nurses' station his elbows pressed against the counter. "She's been ignoring me, since the day before yesterday." His eyes were fixed on her as she talked to George pointing to a chart. They were standing down the hall and didn't even notice his eyes on her.

"She can't ignore you. You live together." Izzie said reading some labels on charts then sorting them in the correct order on the cart.

"But she has," Alex said. "She comes home and goes to bed. She won't eat with me. Barely talks to me; only when necessary. She can barely look at me. Yesterday, she locked herself in her room and left before I was awake this morning."

"Did you cheat on her?" She said sipping her coffee. "That will do it to a girl."

"One, it's just about the sex. She made that clear. And two, no I didn't cheat on her." He said rolling his eyes. "Can you just see if something is wrong?"

"I'll pass it down the line." She smiled and walked off.

"The line?!" He said loudly following her. "I don't want Yang and O'Malley to be in this."

"Do you want answers?" She said after making an abrupt stop.

"Yes."

"Then, I will pass it down the line." She said and started to walk off but stopped and turned around. "If you want answers, Christina can get them. She's her person."

"But Christina… She's Christina. She made a big enough deal when she found out that we were sleeping together."

"Well, then you're not getting answers. She's Meredith Grey. Queen of all that is secretive. She's not just going to come out and say it. She'll say she's fine and she wants to be left alone. She'll storm off and that will be it. Christina can pry it out of her. This is Christina and Meredith we're talking about." She started walking backwards. "Like bread and butter. Like I said, I'll pass it down the line."

Alex sighed and rubbed his face.


	3. Dr Casey Jeffers

Rain made a light pitter patter sound on the roof of the car as she drove across town. Her heart was practically beating out of her chest as she pulled into a parking lot. As she cut the ignition, she looked up at the sign that hung over the door. Willow Coves Pregnancy Clinic. Taking a deep breath, she pushed the door of the car open, grabbed her bag, and headed to the door of the clinic.

The waiting room was simply decorated. Big leather chairs based around a table cluttered the tan room. The light blue counter sat in front of the door with a little elderly woman behind sitting behind it. Her white hair was pulled back into a tight bun, and a pearl necklace dangled from her neck. A few women sat around reading old parenting magazines.

"Hi, can I help you?" The older woman asked in a grandmother-like voice with a sweet smile playing her lips.

Meredith gave her a small smile back with as much effort as she could muster up. "Yes, I'm Meredith Grey."

"Oh yes. The doctor is running right on time. So just have a seat, and we'll get you back as soon as we can."

"Thank you." She smiled once more, before turning to look around the waiting room. A couple of women looked up or moved their bags back as she made her way to a seat against the far wall.

As she settled in her seat, she looked around. Not wanting her mind to wonder, she decided to look for a magazine, but all she saw was parenting magazines, which wouldn't really help keep her mind off of everything. With no other options, she picked up the parenting magazine and began looking through it. Only to end up reading the small print on the back of a medication advertisement that nobody ever read.

--

"Have you guys seen Mer?" He asked as he settled down into a chair beside Izzie at the lunch table.

"The Chief cut her loose early." Christina answered not looking up from the medical journal she was reading.

"What? Why? I mean, she didn't tell me." He said.

"I don't know, Evil Spawn. I'm not her personal day planner now am I?" Christina said lifting her head to glare at him.

"She had an appointment or something." Izzie cut in.

--

"Good Afternoon, Dr. Grey. I'm Dr. Jeffers." A doctor said as she walked into the room. Looking up from what she was reading, she flashed a short smile. "So we're getting a pregnancy test?"

"Yeah. I took a home test. I just want to be sure." She explained playing with her hands.

Dr. Jeffers smiled as she got her instruments ready. "You must be excited."

She just nodded figuring it would be easier than to actually explain her situation. "I was… shocked."

"Unplanned?"

Meredith nodded. "Very, very unplanned. I just started my residency, and I'm getting my interns in a few weeks. I mean my old resident was pregnant and everything." She rambled.

Dr. Jeffers giggled but nodded anyway. "What kind of doctor are you?"

"Surgeon."

"Ah, tough specialty. Like it?"

"Love it." Meredith found it comforting to be talking about something other than her current situation. "How long have you worked here?"

"God. It must be three years now. It goes by so fast."

"I know what you mean." Meredith nodded in agreement. "But, it never seems to go so fast when you're working forty-eight hour shift."

"I know what you mean." Dr. Jeffers chuckled. "Working here has better hours, I guess. It's more flexible." She explained as she wiped Meredith's arm with an alcohol whip. "I have more time to spend with my daughter."

"You have a daughter?"

"She's my pride and joy." She answered with a proud smile.

"How old?"

"Just turned three."

"That's great."

"Well, Dr. Grey, I'm going to draw your blood now."

Meredith nodded. "Please, call me Meredith."

"Well in that case feel free to call me Casey." Meredith smiled, but said nothing. "So your husband must be excited."

"Oh, I'm not married."

"Boyfriend?"

"It's complicated." Meredith winced slightly as the need went into her arm. "And he doesn't know yet."

"Oh… Sorry, I didn't mean to assume."

"No, no. It's fine." She smiled.

"Well, I'll send this to the lab, and you can come back tomorrow to pick up the results."

Meredith hopped off the table. "Thank you, Casey."


	4. Leaving

"Hey." He called when she came in. Dropping her bag, she walked into the kitchen where he was.

"Hey." She answered quietly.

"Want a beer?" He asked holding out a beer. She shook her head. Quirking an eyebrow, he decided not to ask considering how she has been acting lately. "So, ah… Where have you been today?"

She shrugged. "Just around."

"Well, you're pretty lucky. Supposedly, everyone has the flu now." He rolled his eyes shaking his head.

"Hmm." She answered sitting at the bar.

"Are you okay, Mer?" He asked with genuine concern.

"I'm fine. I think I'm going to bed." She sighed walking out.

"Meredith…" He called hurrying after her.

"Yeah." She answered turning to look at him.

"Are we okay?" He asked.

"Why wouldn't we be?" She forced a small smile. "Goodnight."

He grabbed her arm, before she could walk away. Turning to look at him, she raised her eyebrow. Before she could question him, he crashed her lips against hers. After a few seconds, they broke apart.

"Goodnight." He said.

"Goodnight." She smiled softly before walking up the stairs.

He let out a long sigh. Something wasn't right with her.

--

She woke up early and headed to the hospital to try and avoid any conversations with Alex. When she walked into the locker room, she found Christina there early as usual. She was pulling on her scrubs and didn't look up until the door shut behind Meredith. The rest of the locker room was empty since the rest of the residents probably wouldn't be filing in until nearly six.

"What are you doing here so early?"

She shrugged.

They stayed quiet for several minutes until Christina decided to speak. "What's been up with you lately? I mean all week you've been... I don't know. Ignoring us or something."

"Nothing's up. I'm fine. Everything is fine."

"Did Evil Spawn do something? Should I kick his ass or make sure he can't have kids?"

Meredith cringed slightly but hoped Christina wouldn't notice.

"I have to go." She said after she finished changing.

"Where are you going?" She asked.

"I need to see the Chief before I check on my patients."

"For what?"

"I just need to talk to him about something." With that she left before anymore questions could be asked.

--

As she waiting for an answer, she nervously played with her hands trying to decide what to say.

"Come in." His voice came. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door.

He sat behind his desk which was clutter with folders among folders.

"Good Morning, Chief." She said with a slightly risen eyebrow.

"They're intern folders. I have to approve all of these and get them back to the board today, so that the computer can sort them out and put them with a resident." He explained.

"Oh. Do you have a minute?"

"For you? Always."

She smiled lightly. "I have two and a half weeks of time off saved up."

He nodded. "I don't know the exact amount, but I'll take your word for it."

She sighed. "I need some time off, Chief."

He looked confused for a second as he leaned forward so he was leaning on his desk. "What's going on, Meredith?" Tears burned her eyes, but she didn't let them fall. Minutes went by and she didn't answer and just stared blankly out of the window into the courtyard. "What's wrong?"

"You're not my father." She said sternly as tears rolled off her cheek. "You are not my father."

He was slightly taken back. "I know." He answered after a second.

"Then stop trying to be." She almost yelled.

He stood up and walked to her side of the desk. "I'm not your father. I know." He said softly. "But I promised your mother that I would look after you."

She started to cry. For the first time since she took the home test, she just let it go. There were only two times she cried since she found out that she was pregnant; right after the stick turned blue and right now as Richard took her in his arms.

As her cries started to subside, she still allowed him to hug her. "I don't know if I can do it all."

"Do what?" He asked.

"Be a mother and a surgeon."

"You… You're pregnant?"

"I found out three days ago. I'm waiting on the doctor's test, but I'm always nauseous, everything smells, and I'm already gaining weight." She let out a deep breath. "Alex doesn't know."

Richard stayed silent for a few seconds. She was pregnant. The little girl who used to bounce around the yard with her hair pulled back into pigtails; the little girl whose diaper he used to change was pregnant.

"Is this a good thing?" He asked after a few seconds.

She stayed silent and pulled back a little to look up at him. "I don't know. I honestly don't know."

"I know that we've had an off and on relationship, but I'm here for you. No matter what you need."

She nodded. "Thank you."

"Let's get you a request for time off." He smiled.Giggling lightly, she wiped her eyes and sat down in the chair across the desk from him.

"How long do you want off?"

"Two weeks."

"Alright. Well interns are coming in a week in a half. On the sixteenth, in fifteen days, we're having a meeting that all staff must be present for. Is that okay?'

"Sounds good." She forced a small smile. "Thank you, Dr. Webber for everything."

"You can call me Richard, Meredith. I think you've earned it."

Meredith smiled and nodded. "Thank you Richard."

"You're welcome. If you don't mind me asking… where are you going to go?"

She stood up. "I think I'm going to spend some time in my mother's house in Miami or New York… and get my thoughts together."

"I'll see you when you get back. Call if you need anything." He stressed the word 'anything.'

"Please don't tell anyone about where I'm going or about the baby."

"I won't, Meredith."

He gave her a quick hug before she left.

--

The elevator chimed and the doors slide open. She stepped on not paying attention to anyone who was on the elevator. Her mind was too full to care. She stood with her head low and her eyes shielded from the glances of other people around her. She didn't want people to know she was crying. She didn't want them to talk or to make up speculation about her current state. With all the things that could go wrong, she didn't need the hospital to talk about her.

She got off the elevator and hurried to the locker room. Thankfully it had cleared out and the second round of later arrivals hadn't come. She quickly grabbed her bag and changed back into street clothes before leaving as quickly as possible.


	5. Mark Sloan

She got home to find the house empty as if she had planned it

She got home to find the house empty as if she had planned it. Hurrying upstairs, she grabbed a suitcase and headed to her room. Without even thinking, she threw different clothes into the suitcase before walking to the nightstand and pulled out a piece of paper and pen. Settling into the chair behind the desk, she let out a sigh and began to write.

_Alex, _

_As I'm sure you've notice, I've had a lot on my mind the last week or so. I have an explanation for all of it, but right now… I can't think. I asked the Chief for some time off, so I'm spending two weeks at one of my mother's vacation homes. I really just need to think and get everything straight in my head. I hope you understand. _

_See you in two weeks. _

_-Meredith. _

Folding the letter in half, she wrote his name neatly on the top, grabbed the suitcase, and walked out.

--

"Hey, have you seen Mer?" He asked walking up to Izzie and Christina who were talking to each other at the nurses' station.

"Nope." They both answered at the same time.

He sighed. "I've been looking for her everywhere."

"Looking for a quickie, Kerev?" Christina said raising an eyebrow.

He just rolled his eyes. "I just haven't seen her all day."

"Me neither." Izzie said.

"She was here this morning." Christina sighed going back to charts.

"Maybe she went home." Izzie shrugged.

Alex nodded. Something didn't feel right. They had all been friends for years. He and Meredith were sleeping together. It wasn't like her just to pick up and leave work.

"Yeah. Probably… See you later."

--

He hadn't seen Meredith all day. Figuring she had gone home, he gave up his search. But as he put the car into park, he noticed no movement in the house. Brushing it off, he pushed the door open and headed towards the front door.

"Meredith!" He called as he opened the door. "Mer? You home?"

When he got no answer, worry washed over him. He walked into the kitchen to find it empty. Just as he was about to leave a piece of paper with his name caught his eye. Picking it up, he recognized the handwriting and opened the note. As he read it relief came followed by confusion. Meredith had left out of the blue for no apparent reason? What the hell was going on?

--

Just finishing medical school, Ellis Grey walked away from her first, abusive husband with two things: a bag of clothes and Mark Sloan. When she walked away from her first love, Charles Sloan, she was hardly twenty-six years old. Her last years of school consisted of classes, her son, and being hit around by her husband. Finally growing sick of waiting for him to change, she picked up and left him taking their son with her. She moved to Seattle just as her internship began. Mark was six years old when his sister was born. His mother with in her second marriage and four years into her residency. He quickly grew protective over his younger sister, Meredith. And when Ellis's second marriage failed this time due to her infidelity, the siblings, now eleven and six, were moved to Boston. As Ellis grew more and more absent in there lives, the more protective Mark became. Even into college, he would come home to threaten a boyfriend or two. They had always been close. Even when Mark graduated medical school and moved to New York as Meredith started her second year of college, they remained close shuttling between the two cities to see each other. When she graduated medical school, her was almost an attending and pressured her to move to New York. But when Ellis got sick, she moved her and her mother out to Seattle leaving the two siblings on opposite sides of the country. This never strained their relationship though visits grew virtually nonexistent.

But now she stood in the New York Airport trying to figure out how to tell him everything that was going on. No matter how understanding and supportive Mark had ever been, she wasn't sure how he would take the news that she was so similar to their own mother. It was their mother who when faced with a hardship turned and ran away. And right when this hardship present itself in her life, Meredith wanted to run and left Seattle even if only temporarily.

Hailing a taxi, she didn't allow her train of thought to break not even long enough to call her brother to tell him that she was in New York. She told the driver the brief directions to her brother's home and watched the barely familiar scenes went by outside the window. She waited in silence until they pulled in front of a huge apartment complex. Quickly she paid, gathered her things, and headed inside to the elevator. The elevator finally dinged and she got out on the second to top floor. The top floor was the owner's suite that had about as much square footage as a large house crunched down onto one floor. Below that were the expensive apartment suites were only a little smaller than the owner's suite. Standing in the middle of the small hall, she looked at the two doors on either side of her. One was Mark's that extended to the end of the east half of the north wing and one the other was someone else's that extended the entire west side of the north wing. Sighing, she knocked on Mark's door. No answer. She knocked again a little louder. Still getting no answer she pulled out her key ring and looked through until she found his key. She pushed the door open once she successfully unlocked it.

"Mark? Hello?" She called dropping her bags. "Big brother dearest."

Walking through out the apartment and still not finding him, she finally came to the conclusion he was out at work or some place. She decided to wait there for him and fell back on the couch.

--

It was finally eight when he got off the elevator and started towards his door. Digging through his pocket, he withdrew his key and stuck it in the whole only to find it unlocked. He became instantly alarmed. Robberies in New York weren't uncommon even in up scale places, but this was the first time he ever came home to find his apartment unlocked. Slightly nervous, he pushed the door open. The lamp was on and that first caught his eye.

"Hey, Big brother." Meredith said stepping out from the kitchen. He jumped at the voice.

"Jesus, Mer, what the hell are you trying to do? Kill me?" He asked letting out a sigh when he realized who was actually in his apartment.

"I figured you wouldn't mind if I let myself in." She shrugged walking back into the kitchen. His eyes wondered the room as he followed her in.

"Yeah, no… it's fine." He said. "But what are you doing here?"

"Can't I visit my brother without an arterial motive?" She asked taking a bite of the sandwich she had made.

"I guess… but you don't normally."

"We'll talk about it later. For now, who's this Molly girl?" She asked with that little sister prying look in her eyes. He chuckled pulling her into a tight hug.

"I miss you, Mer." He admitted kissing her cheek.

"I missed you too."


	6. Admitting

Seattle, Washington…

**Seattle, Washington…**

He had called everybody in their circle of friends to see if any of them knew why she left or where she went. Nobody knew that she was even gone, and nobody had any idea why. Her odd behavior over the last few days had been evident to everybody, but not even Cristina knew what attributed to it. The next day, he awoke without her in his bed. He found himself missing her in his arms, which was weird. They were just having sex. They weren't a couple. They were never planning into a relationship. They're in a sexual… non-relationship. They were friends, that's it. That's all she wanted out of him.

He sighed and pulled himself out of bed. After showering and changing, he headed downstairs to the empty kitchen. Izzie and George had long since moved out leaving Alex and Meredith alone. That might have been what started it all. They were alone, and nobody was there to say 'no.' Somehow, late night watching movies and eating popcorn lead to falling asleep in each other's arms on the couch which lead to sex.

After grabbing some coffee, he headed out the door for work. He knew it was going to be a long day without their meetings in the on-call room.

--

"Hear anything?" Izzie asked when she saw Alex walking in. He just shook his head and made his way to his locker wordlessly.

"Aw, Evil Spawn misses his sex-buddy." Christina cooed mockingly.

"Shut it, Yang." He said with a glare.

"What is wrong with her?" George thought out loud.

"Do you think we'd be asking the same question if we knew, Bambi?" Christina snapped.

"My name is George!"

"It's Bambi."

"George!"

"Bambi!"

"Shut up!" Izzie yelled making them look at her. "We're at work. This isn't the place to be yelling."

"Whatever, Barbie." Christina rolled her eyes before walking out. George followed close behind. Izzie turned her gaze to Alex. He was shutting his locker after putting all his things away and changing.

"Do you miss her?"

"I'm perfectly fine." He said slightly coldly unsure if it's the truth but left it as that and walked out.

--

**New York City, New York…**

He stared at his sister as she stirred her cereal. She hadn't looked at him or said anything since she said "Good Morning" to him.

"What?" She snapped harsher than she anticipated. Letting out a sigh, she looked at him apologetically. "Sorry. I've got a lot on my mind."

"What's wrong, Mer?"

"What do you mean?"

"You show up out of the blue, you look like you have a lot on your mind, and you refuse to talk about Seattle."

"I missed you." He gave her a disbelieving look. She sighed. "Maybe you were right?"

"Of course I was." He said with a pompous smirk. "What was I right about?"

"I should have just come to New York."

"Well, I could have told you that. It rains in Seattle."

"And when it rains it pours. And when it pours everybody's lives go down the toilet. I think I have a freaking cloud over my head all time."

"Somehow, I think we aren't talking about rain anymore." Her eyes filled with tears as they fell back to her bowl of cereal. "Talk to me, Mer. Tell big brother what's wrong." She let the tears roll off her cheeks. And he realized that something was really wrong. "Did something happen? Are you okay?" He moved to her side pulling her into his arms.

"Mark… I'm… I'm pregnant." She cried into his shoulder as her body shook with sobs.


	7. Waiting

He stared at his baby sister. He couldn't have heard right. This was his baby sister. He used to fight off her old boyfriends with deadly threats and stone-cold glares. Now she was pregnant… and in New York. There had to be more to the situation. Alex did something wrong. That had to be it. Mark knew bits and pieces about the situation his sister had gotten herself into with her fellow resident. Maybe he could have prevented all this. Obviously _this _was not what Meredith had in mind when she got into their "sex non-relationship." Maybe if he had flown out to Seattle and threatened the guy just like he used to with all Meredith's other boy toys/boyfriends, she wouldn't be in this predicament. Maybe she wouldn't have flown to the other side of the country with tears streaming from her eyes that held unwavering confusion.

Meredith buried her face into her hands not wanting to look at him. Part of her was afraid. Part of her wanted him to comfort her like he used to when she broke up with a high school boyfriend. He wasn't exactly how to reply to her confession when she turned her head after a few minutes to look at him. But he knew he had to say something.

"How do you feel about this?" He asked calmly with nothing else to say. Besides, it seemed like the logical place to start the conversation that would definitely be a long one.

"I don't know what to feel. Part of me wants to run and hide. Part of my wants to tell him. And part of me thinks it would be better if I… run away to Mexico and start a new life with a man named Pablo." He gave her a soft smile rubbing her back in a small circular pattern. "What do I do Mark?"

"You know I can't tell you what to do with your life."

"That's never stopped you before." She pointed out wiping her cheeks.

"You're on your own for this one. But… whatever you decide. I'm here for you. Whether it's helping you change diapers or flying back to Seattle with you. Personally, I'd like the latter so I can kick this Alex guy's ass."

She couldn't help but giggle. "He doesn't even know, Mark." It took a second for her brain to catch up with her mouth. As the thoughts crossed her mind, a fresh batch of tears started down her cheeks. He pulled her into his arms unsure of what to say. So he just held her in his brotherly embrace until her sobs started to subside.

--

**Seattle, Washington…**

"Why hasn't she called?" George asked to nobody in particular. Everybody knew the 'she' he was referring to. They were all worried about her. And their worry only worsened after the chief said 'she needed to get away.' Sure, they all noticed her distraction and constant distant gazes over the past week or so. But what was so bad that she needed to 'get away.'

"We don't know." Izzie sighed as she swigged her beer.

They were all at Alex's and Meredith's house watching a surgical tape and sipping a beer. They weren't necessarily waiting by the phone for her call. They were more or less passing time until she called and they were sure she wasn't hurt or sick or something like that.

"Come on. This is pathetic." Christina said dropping her feet from the coffee table to the floor. "She's fine."

"We're just hanging out…We aren't waiting for her to come home or something." Izzie said trying to sound convincing, but failing.

"She's our friend. We aren't just going to accept that fact she disappeared." George pointed out as if he were the voice of reason in their heads.

Sighing, Christina fell back and rested her feet on the coffee table once again. "We aren't waiting for her to call. We're watching a kick ass surgery."

Izzie nodded in agreement and tried to focus on the TV. It was easier said than done for all of them.

"God we're a mess with out Meredith." Izzie sighed loudly. Nobody answered, but it was true. All the time they spent together, it was hardly noticeable how much they depended on their routines. But when it was disturbed, it was all they could think about. Without the Dark and Twisty Meredith they had all come to know and love, everything seemed so different. Izzie let the suggestion past acknowledging the fact nobody would actually admit it and turned her gaze to Alex. "You're unusually quiet today, Alex."

"Just tired." He answered without lifting his eyes from the piece of fuzz he was currently watching slowly moved across the rug in the low, hardly noticeable breeze of the air conditioning vent.

--

The next day came slower than it ever seemed possible. After everyone left the night before, he was left alone in the big empty house. He fell asleep on the couch a little after midnight after watching four more surgical tapes. When he woke up, he was greeted by the unfamiliar silence that hung in the air. Shuffling up the stairs he made his way to the shower. Everything seemed so… boring without Meredith. It wasn't that it _needed _her. It was more that without her around everything seemed so quiet. The only sounds in the house were his own footsteps, the water hitting the shower floor, and the hum of the air conditioning. When he got out of the shower, he dried off and changed quickly before heading off to work.

By the time he got there, Christina and Izzie were already changed and waiting around in the locker room for whatever it was that they were waiting for. George was behind one of the curtained area in the back. They looked up when the locker room door opened, and he stepped in.

"Hey." He said with disinterest in his voice.

"Hey." They all replied in their morning voices.

If for no other reason, they changed in silence because there was nothing to be said. Christina eventually made her way out mumbling something about needing a good case. Izzie stayed around munching on an apple before picking up her coffee to leave.

"See you guys later." She walked out without waiting for any kind of response.

George lingered a while longer before saying his goodbyes and shuffling out. Alex stayed behind collecting his things in his lab coat and clipping his pager on his waist.

Silence gave the usually noisy locker room an uncomfortable feeling in the pit of his stomach. He ignored it, gathered the rest of his possessions in his locker, and headed out in the same direction everybody else had.

Today was going to be a long day. He could feel it.


	8. A Whole Damn Rope

**New York City, New York…**

Ten days passed slowly and painfully for her and her big brother. The second day was when the phone calls began. By noon, she turned off her phone after getting too annoyed with the repetitive upbeat tone that didn't seem to help her depressed, confused mood. Nothing seemed to uplift her spirits. She just absently watched TV or did clerical work that she made Mark give her from his practice. Nothing seemed to faze her, and nothing seemed to ease her mind. For Mark, who at one time made it his life's work to make her happy, it seemed nearly impossible to see her in that condition.

It was late at night from what she could tell from where she sat at the window. The moon was large, and the stars were bright in contrast to the dark sky they lied against. The moon and stars seemed so foreign to her. In Seattle, thick storm clouds always hid them. There were few times it would clear up and the moon would shine down on the city like a big spotlight. New York's night scenery always seemed so beautiful compared to Seattle's, but the bright lights of the city seemed to interfere with it most nights. But nothing compared to nights in Arizona. Once a year when they were children, Ellis would take them to Arizona when she had to be there for a medical conference. After a day at the convention center, Ellis would take them out to dinner and for ice cream until late evening. Then, they would drive out pretty much in the middle of nowhere to watch the sun set and the moon and stars settle over the desert.

"_Come on, Mark." She called in her excited seven-year-old voice as she pulled herself onto another rock. Her shoes shifting in the dirt slightly as she turned to look down at her thirteen-year-old brother who wasn't far behind. _

"_Don't go ahead of me, Mer. You could get hurt."_

"_Don't be silly, Mark." She rolled her eyes as she crouched down a little. "I'm not going to get hurt. But if you don't hurry, then will miss it!"_

"_Mer, we've been coming here for two years now, haven't you gotten a good idea of what it looks like?"_

"_It's different everyday." She said standing up straighter. _

"_Whatever." He sighed and pulled himself onto the same rock he had been one. "Come on. Only two more." _

_He started up first skillfully maneuvering himself the same way he had the year before remembering every change in the rock since the next day they'd be climbing the same one. He pulled himself on the top rock and held out his hand for her which she gladly took. _

"_Thank you." She sighed and turned to look out on where the sun was setting. Light blue that had made up the sky had given way to a deep blue almost black color. Layers of orange, pink, and purple lined the rest of the sky. Black silhouettes of cacti and other branchy shrubs made up the ground. Sitting down, she let out a content sigh, and Mark sat down beside her. "It's amazing."_

"_Yeah it is." He glanced over his shoulder and looked at Ellis pacing the area. She talked into her phone in low, calm voice. _

_They stayed as they were until night settled, and the bright moon shone over the area. Stars shimmered brightly, but not a cloud was in sight._

"What are you thinking about?"

She glanced over at where he was leaning against the doorframe before returning her eyes out the window. "Arizona."

He chuckled quietly, pushed off the door, and sat at the end of the bed. "God that was a long time ago."

"It was always so amazing. I never got tired of seeing it."

"It was amazing."

"We had some of our memories with Mom there. Like the time I fell off the big rock, remember that?"

She giggled and nodded. "I was… nine, I think. That would have made you fifteen. You and your spiteful ego were making an argument with Mom…"

"And I was climbing down the rocks in pitch black and slipped up on a branch or something that had grown out since the last time we had been down there."

"You fell flat on my ass."

"I think that was the first and maybe only time Mom dropped an argument and her phone to come help me." He chuckled.

"God, why did everything have to change? In that moment while Mom was trying to see if you had a concussion but you were too stubborn to sit still, everything seemed so easy."

"That's because you were too busy laughing you ass off to care about anything else."

"Yeah." She giggled lightly looking back at the room. "Maybe not caring is easier than caring."

"I know what you mean." She just nodded while silence hung in the air for a good five minutes.

"I think I'm going to take my baby down there at some point."

"To Arizona?"

"Yeah. Everything is peaceful there, and if this doesn't work out, we're going to need peace."

"It'll work out."

"You don't know Alex. He's not much of the responsibility kind of guy. He's like… he's like you."

"What's wrong with me?" He asked defensively. "I helped raise you pretty well if I do say so myself."

"Not like that. You aren't ready to settle down. Neither is he. Besides, our relationship is strictly sex."

He sighed and lied back on the bed looking at the ceiling. "Have you ever thought it could be more?"

"I…um… I…" She stammered looking at him. He turned his head and smirked. "I mean… have I thought about it? Yes. But he's Alex, for Christ sake."

"What's so bad about this guy?"

"You're actually rooting for him?"

"I will never root for any man in your life since all men are scum out to hurt my baby sister, but… What's wrong with him?"

She was silent for a long time continually opening her mouth and closing it. "He's Evil Spawn." She finally blurted causing him to lift an eyebrow. "He makes dirty joke… He's a womanizer. He… He cheated on Izzie! He would hurt me and my baby."

"He sounds like someone I know…" He joked remembering her using the same words to describe him a few years back. "If the fact that he's a 'womanizer' and makes dirty jokes, is the worst things about him then… that's not that bad. I know plenty of guys just like that who settle down to be family men."

"He cheated on Izz."

"That was Izzie, not you. There could have been circumstances or something you didn't know about. And you can't say that you don't trust him or that he'll hurt you seeing as you trusted him enough to sleep with him."

"He was a good lay."

"Oh God, I don't need to hear that."

"Besides there were no strings attached."

"There are always strings attached. Even if you don't realize it there is some part of you that has feelings for him." He sighed and stood up. "Now there's like a whole damn rope attached… He knocked you up, and now you have to try to do what's best for both you and your baby." With that he walked out.


	9. Feels Wrong

**Seattle, Washington…**

"She'll be back for interns, right?" George asked. "Cause that meeting. It's in two days. She'll be back by then."

"O'Malley, if you don't shut your mouth, I'll do it for you." Alex threatened without removing his eyes from his chart.

"God, Evil Spawn, it's been thirteen days and you're already that sex deprived?" Rolling his eyes, he decided not to respond. "Just go to Joe's pick up some one-night stand."

"I don't want to go to Joe's." He mumbled stuffing a few chips in his mouth.

"What are you that hooked on Mer? Can you not sleep with someone else?" Christina mocked.

"Shut up, Christina." Izzie snapped. "I think it's cute. You know, that they're falling for each other."

"I'm not falling for her. I'm having sex with a consenting adult friend." He protested hopping off the gurney. "See you at Joe's later, Yang." He called back as he walked off.

--

**New York City, New York…**

"Come on, Meredith." Mark called from the door as he tapped his foot with annoyance.

"Shut up, I'm coming!" She yelled back rolling her eyes. "I don't see why we have to go." She complained as she stomped down the stairs like a five year old.

"Because you've been sitting on your ass since you got here."

"Maybe I like sitting on my ass." She shot back as she slipped her arms into the jacket he was holding open.

"Just humor me?" Rolling her eyes, she nodded. "Thank you. You are my favorite little sister."

"Thanks, you are so sweet." She said sarcastically as she headed out to the car.

The car ride was pretty much silent other than for the radio. Every now and then, they bickered about a song or changing the station. After twenty minutes, they drove into a parking lot.

"Where are we?"

"We are in a parking lot." She glared at him as she pulled herself out of the expensive car and shut the door. "We're going to do some shopping." She just nodded not bothering to protest. "So, how far along are you?" He asked. In the past twelve days since she told him about the pregnancy, they didn't once talk about the actually pregnancy. The times she actually wanted or was open to talking about it, they focused more on her situation with Alex.

"Um, I'm not exactly sure. I haven't had an ultrasound or anything."

"Well you're a doctor. If you had to guess…?"

"Two months. Maybe." She shrugged. "I'll go back to see Dr. Jeffers when I get back to Seattle, I guess."

"Two days right?"

"Ugh, don't remind me. Not only do I have to return to my 'situation', we're getting freaking interns. I don't know what to do, Mark. I should tell him right. I mean, we live together. He's going to notice." She sighed as they walked through time square.

"You have to, Meredith. You want t to right?"

She took a deep breath and let it out slow. "I want to, but I don't want him to reject our baby."

"You have to take the risk sometimes, Mer."

"How would you know? You've never been pregnant."

"And I never plan to be."

"Mark, I'm being serious!" She said slapping his arm.

He chuckle and rubbed his arm before getting serious. "You have to. You know deep down, you want to. Just do it."

She stared at him and slowly nodded. "I love you, Big Bro."

"Love you too, Little Sis."

--

**Seattle, Washington…**

"Ready to get laid?" Christina asked coming up beside him.

"I don't need your help, Yang." He said taking a swig of beer.

"Obviously." She replied sarcastically. "You needed Meredith's help."

"If you haven't noticed, Meredith is hot. She's really good in bed."

She gave him a disgusted look which he shrugged off. "Fine, I'll leave you alone." She grabbed her jacket and walked out. He wasn't going to go through with it, she knew it.

He had been sitting there ten minutes before someone came up and sat beside him. She was a dark blonde hair woman. She wore a red swoop-neck low cut shirt, black pants, and black heels. She smiled with her dark pink lipstick-colored lips at him. "Can I buy you a drink?"

"Sure." He answered leaning back to look at her. She was a attractive woman with big boobs and a nice ass, but everything felt so wrong. He didn't want to mount her right then and there. He just wanted to go home. "On second thought." He finally said stopping her from calling Joe over. "I have something I got to do."

"What?" She looked at him as if she had never turned down before.

"Thanks, but no thanks." He repeated more bluntly as he grabbed his jacket. "Put it on my tab, Joe?"

"Always do." Joe called back rolling his eyes. "You're going to owe me an arm and a leg soon."

"You know I'm good for it." He yelled and hurried out.


	10. Back To Seattle

He didn't sleep well after that night at the bar. The next day, work progressed slower than he would have liked. Christina kept making a big deal out of the fact he couldn't pick up a girl. Izzie kept giving him a smirk that made him feel like a four year old whose mother thought he had a crush on a neighborhood girl. George kept stressing the fact that the next day they had a meeting, and Meredith hadn't yet called or made any indication of her return. He finally trudged out of the hospital annoyed and emotionally drained. After careful deliberation, he decided against going to Joe's not wanting to run into anyone or have to figure out why he suddenly didn't have the urge to bring any hot women home.

He tried not to think about it on his way home or when he walked into the house. After grabbing a beer, he settled onto the couch and put the TV on ESPN. His attention didn't stay on the reply of last year's football season.

Somehow, by the time the first commercial, his mind was on Meredith for the umpteenth time that day. Where did she go? Why did she go? More importantly, why did he care so much? Sure he and Meredith were close friends. They had seen each other during some of the highest and lowest parts of their lives and careers. She had been the first to reach out after he failed his intern exam. He had been the first to notice Derek's lack of presence around the house after Christina's wedding while Christina, Izzie, and George were too busy with their lives. They had been there for each other through their hard times. But they were just friends who occasionally… more than often shared a bed at night. Sure their relationship was weird, and there were some unexpected attachments that they vocalized more than once after they had a little too much to drink. But it wasn't like they were in _love. _There was no chance that the two most dark and twisty people in the whole hospital would find their happy ending or whatever that easily. But why the hell did he feel like this?

--

**New York City, New York…**

"Are you sure you can do this?" She said curiously as she studied her brother's face.

"The practice won't miss me if I'm gone for three days." He shrugged as he threw another pair of jeans into his suitcase.

"Maybe I should open a practice. Then I could come and go as I please."

"It's the only way to practice medicine."

She sighed and gave him a small smile. "Thank you, Mark."

"No problem, Mer." He shrugged.

"I'd think you'd have a little bit of a problem with the whole red eye thing."

"You have not begun to hear the beginning of it."

She rolled her eyes and sat down. "I don't want interns."

He chuckled. "Do what I do…"

"I can't make them get me coffee."

"Sure you can. You're their boss."

She giggled and lied back. "I don't think I'm ready to go back. Can't I stay here?"

"Though, I would love nothing more than to have my little sister in the same city, you can't."

"Why not?" She pouted childishly.

"Because you have to face him."

"Yeah, I know." She sighed.

--

**Seattle, Washington…**

They had been able to sleep most of the way there since it was quite a few hours and during the night. But when turbulence woke her, she had trouble going back to sleep. By her calculation, they would be landing in a little over an hour. And anticipation and anxiety were starting to get to her. After fidgeting in her seat with her eyes shut for fifteen minutes, she was able to fall into a light sleep. But twenty minutes later, she woke up again for no other reason then she was uncomfortable. She gave up on sleep after that and read a magazine advertising some resorts one of the airline's sponsors had in the Cayman Islands. After about forty or forty-five minutes, a flight attendant came around waking everyone so they could put on their seat belts. Grumbles filled the cabin as people sleepily sat up to put on their seat belts.

Meredith shook her brother awake and advised him to buckle his seat belt. He groaned and warily did as he was told. She, too, put on her seat belt and set the magazine back in the pocket on the back of the seat in front of her. In a few moments, the captain came over the loud speaker and informed them they would be on the ground on ten minutes.

She glanced down at her watch and set it back three hours from the time that it was set for in New York. It was all little past twelve o'clock midnight. It wasn't long until she was on the plane touched down. Ten minutes later, they were allowed to get their carry-on bags and get off the plane. Mark got down their bags and led her off to plane.

The airport wasn't active since it was so late. Mostly tired looking people who waited for people to get off planes, security and other personnel, and the people getting off the plane. They found their bags in baggage claim and headed to her car.

Her car was where she left it in the extended parking area.

"Am I taking you to a hotel?"

He nodded. "That's fine."

She could tell he was tired and the next day he'd be complaining about the red eye. Mark was the kind of guy who could sleep all night and still complain the next morning. So, she didn't push for any type of conversation as she got behind the wheel and drove the security guard's station to pay her bill for leaving her car there. It wound up being a hundred and fifty dollars.

The whole way to the hotel, she debated on whether to go home and possible face Alex in the morning if not that night or to find somewhere else to sleep. Deciding, the bomb she would be dropping on him wasn't a fifteen minute conversation, she decided to go to the hospital and try to get a little sleep in an on-call room.

"I'll come pick you up after my meeting."

"It's okay. I'll get a cab to the hospital tomorrow. I want to see my little sis in action."

She rolled her eyes and nodded. "Good night."

"Night." He gave a short wave before wheeling his suitcase into the hotel.


	11. You're Back

Her alarm on her cell phone woke her promptly at six. She groaned as she rolled over to silence it. Rubbing deep circles with her fists into her eyes, she rolled back onto her back and stared up at the bottom of the top bunk that was slightly lit by the light from the crack in the door. She sat up raking her slightly tangled hair with her fingers as she set her feet on the ground. Letting out a deep sigh, she stood up only to find the dark room spinning as her stomach churned threatening to cause her to empty the contents of her stomach. She was able to breathe through the nausea as she slipped on her shoes and walked out.

The bright light was not all the welcoming that morning. Her eyes squinted into a straight line to the point they were almost closed as she walked down the hall towards the locker room. By the time she open the locker room door, she was able to fully open her eyes. The smell hit her as she walked in reminding her of out nauseous she was. It felt like her stomach did a full 360 sending her running to the bathroom.

It wasn't long after emptying the little that her stomach contained into the toilet that she returned to her locker, got her spare toothbrush, and brushed her teeth. She began changing just as she heard the first group of residents flock into the locker room complaining about the upcoming arrival of interns that day. She sighed as she thought about having the baby-sit them and carry a baby. It all seemed slightly redundant. One baby was enough; five newly graduated medical students were just uncalled for. She stopped listening to the conversations as she got lost in her own thoughts until two familiar voices caught her attention. Christina and George were arguing as they walked into the locker room.

It wasn't for another second that they turned the corner just as she finished tying the drawstring of her pants. Izzie, George, and Christina stopped and looked at her.

"_Where's Alex?"_ She thought.

"Meredith!" Izzie squealed practically jumping at her with open arms.

Meredith forced a smile and gave her a light hug. "Hey guys. Miss me much?"

"It's not often that you disappear out of the blue for no apparent reason." Christina pointed out as she headed to her locker.

"Sorry about that." Meredith sighed. "Needed to go see someone."

They all shrugged it off getting the hint she didn't want to talk about it. After tying her shoes, she said 'goodbye' and hurried away. She had to check in with Richard before picking up her charts for the day, and she didn't want to be late for the meeting.

--

He woke up and moved throughout his morning routine feeling unusually sluggish as he did so. He was already five minutes late getting out to the car. The he hit traffic. He continued to fight his "inner battle" that had been in his head all night, on the way to the hospital. And to make matters worse, he pulled into the parking lot ten minutes late. Mentally kicking himself, he ran as fast as he could into the hospital.

The locker room had been emptied by the time he got there. So he was able to move swiftly about and was changed in record time. He hurried out of the locker room as he hastily tried to get his lab coat on, his stethoscope around his neck, and his pager on his waistband. His morning definitely wasn't going well.

--

She leaned up against the wall next to the window nursing her queasy stomach with a small pack of saltines. Christina sat on the window sill still trying to pry the reason she had disappeared for nearly two weeks out of her while George and Izzie argued over a patient. To make matters worse, she still hadn't seen Alex which was making her even more anxious.

The door opened, and Richard walked in. The room became a quiet murmur opposed to the volume it had been. He set a large stack of files down on the table and glanced at the clock. Two minutes. Finally, Alex strolled in pretend he had been frantically running throughout the hospital only moments before. Meredith couldn't help but stiffen as his eyes scanned the room. Part of her didn't want him to see her. Part of her did. Fortunately or unfortunately, he saw her and smiled as he made his way over. She couldn't help but smile back, and in an instant he was by her side.

"Hey, your back." He said with relief.

"Yep." She nodded. Before he could say anymore, Richard called for the room's attention. He couldn't help but glance over as she shifted around. Something was different, he could feel it.

--

Sorry about the lack of updates. I've been really busy.


End file.
